Systems and methods to facilitate active reading

ABSTRACT

Review systems and methods facilitate active reading by providing a flexible environment in which users can examine documents. A review system can comprise a virtual workspace, a document view region, a preview region, and optional document objects. The virtual workspace can simulate a desktop or other physical workspace. The document view region can display a portion of an open document at a magnification sufficient for reading. The preview region can display the document at a magnification sufficient to enable the general layout of the entire document to be determined. The document objects can be created from the document through tools of the review system. These document objects can be independently moveable throughout the virtual workspace as needed to facilitate the user&#39;s active reading process.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

This invention was made with government support under Grant No.IIS0705569 awarded by National Science Foundation. The government hascertain rights in the invention.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a U.S. National Stage of International ApplicationNo. PCT/US2011/028595, filed 16 Mar. 2011, which claims priority to PCTPatent Application No. PCT/US2010/050911, filed 30 Sep. 2010, whichclaims a benefit under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) of U.S. ProvisionalApplication Ser. No. 61/247,279, filed 30 Sep. 2009. The entire contentsand substance of these applications are hereby incorporated by referenceas if fully set out below.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Various embodiments of the present invention relate to digital documentsand, more particularly, to systems and methods to facilitate activereading of digital documents.

BACKGROUND

From magazines and novels to review of important document, reading formsa critical part of our lives, and many reading tasks involve a richinteraction with the text. This rich interaction, known as activereading, can be conducted to answer questions, perform analysis, orobtain information. Active reading can involve highlighting, annotating,outlining, note-taking, comparing, and searching. As a result, activereading generally demands more of a reading medium than simply anability to advance pages.

Although paper supports bimanual interaction and freeform annotationwithin the boundaries of a single page, paper lacks the flexibility toprovide, for example, content rearrangement, document overviews, andannotation outside of page boundaries. Additionally, although thetangibility of paper supports some rapid forms of navigation, such asdog-earing and bookmarking with a finger, paper provides littleflexibility to create a customized navigational structure. Modernpen-based computerized tablets do a fine job of imitating paper, whichbenefits users by providing a familiar medium, but as a result, thesepen-based tablets suffer from the same limitations as paper. Thus,neither paper nor modern computer systems adequately facilitate activereading.

SUMMARY

There is a need for a document review system to provide a fluid-likeenvironment in which users can freely and flexibly manipulate,rearrange, and annotate documents without many of the restrictioninherent in paper. It is to such systems and related methods thatvarious embodiments of the present invention are directed.

Briefly described, various embodiments of the present invention arereview systems and methods for facilitating active reading of documents,by providing a fluid-like interface with advantages over physical paperand conventional word processing systems. According to embodiments ofthe present invention, a document review system can provide a novelapproach to representing and interacting with documents. In contrast tothe paper model, which offers a stable but rigid representation, thedocument review system can provide a highly flexible, malleable documentrepresentation. The document review system can provide highdegree-of-freedom ways to navigate through and manipulate the documentrepresentation, control what document content is displayed and where,and create annotations and other structures related to the document. Tothis end, the document review system can include a multi-touch,gesture-based user interface.

Earlier work has shown that active reading involves four core processes:annotation, content extraction, navigation, and layout. Embodiments ofthe document review system can provide improvements, as compared topaper and conventional word processing, to each of these processes.Annotation can be generally defined as text embellishment, includinghighlighting and marginalia. The review system can provide efficientannotation by enabling convenient switching between annotation tools, bysupporting idiosyncratic markings, and by providing a convenient meansfor retrieving annotations made previously. Content extraction generallyincludes copying or moving content from a document to a secondarylocation, such as when outlining or note-taking. In an exemplaryembodiment, the review system can closely integrate extraction with thereading process, so that user can organize and view extracted content,as well as link extracted content back to the original document.Navigation generally entails moving throughout a document and betweenmultiple documents, such as when searching for text, turning a page, orflipping between selected locations for comparison. The review systemcan support bookmarks and parallelism to facilitate these or othernavigational tasks. Layout generally refers to the visual or spatialarrangement of the document and related objects. The review system canoptimize layout according to the user's preferences by enabling distinctportions of the document to be viewed in parallel, while maintaining thedocument's linearity.

More specifically, in an exemplary embodiment, a document review systemcan comprise a virtual workspace, a document view region, a previewregion, and optional document objects. The system can be embodied in oneor more computer-readable media and can be executable by one or morecomputer processors on a computing device. The computing device cancomprise a multi-touch interface by which a user can interact with thevirtual workspace and the overall document review system.

The virtual workspace can be a working environment in which the user canreview a document. The virtual workspace can be, for example, agraphical user interface displayed in a virtual window or frame viewablethrough the multi-touch interface. In an exemplary embodiment, thevirtual workspace can be designed to look and feel like a physicaldesktop or other physical workspace to which the user may be accustomed.The virtual workspace can be a relatively unstructured environment,enabling users to place the document objects as desired throughout thevirtual workspace.

The document view region can be contained fully or partially within thevirtual workspace. When a user opens one or more document in theworkspace, at least part of the documents can be displayed in the viewregion. In an exemplary embodiment, the view region can be configured todisplay a viewable portion of at least one document at a size thatenables a user to easily read the text of the document. The size of thedocument in the view region can, however, be increased or decreased asthe user desired. If the document is too long to be contained fullywithin the view region at a given magnification state of the document,then only a portion of the document can be viewable in the view region.The document can be displayed in a continuous layout, and in anexemplary embodiment, page breaks in the document can be hidden, so thatthe document appears to be seamless and unbounded by pagination.

Like the document view region, the preview region can be contained fullyor partially within the virtual workspace. The preview region candisplay a larger portion of the document, at a smaller size, than theview region. In an exemplary embodiment, the magnification of thepreview region can be such that the entire document can be displayedcontinuously in the preview region. Alternatively, however, themagnification can be such that the general layout of the document can bedetermined by the preview region, although the text of the document neednot be readable within the region. The preview region can be linked tothe document view region and can serve various navigational or otherpurposes. For example, and not limitation, when a user touches a pointin the document within the preview region, the portion of the documentdisplayed in the document view region can change, so as to center in thedocument view region the portion of the document touched in the previewregion. Thus, the preview region can be utilized to select a portion ofthe document that is displayed in the document view region.

The document objects can be moveable objects positioned throughout thevirtual workspace as desired by the user. In some embodiments, however,such movement can be restricted to areas outside of one or both of thedocument view region and the preview region, so as not to obstruct theseregions. A document object can be created by the user to assist the userin actively reading of the document. For example, and not limitation,the user can create an excerpt of the document or an annotation, eitherof which can be encapsulated in a document object, which may be smallerand more easily manipulable than the document as a whole. Once created,the document object can be freely moved about the virtual workspace, soas to enable the user to arrange the virtual workspace in a manner thatcreates a customized active reading experience. The document object canbe linked to the portion or portions of the document to which thedocument object relates. For example, the document object can include avisual link, such as an arrow, that the user can touch to cause the oneor more documents in the document view region to shift position, thusbringing the related portions into view.

The document review system can thus enable users to manipulate documentsin a way that improves upon paper and other document manipulationsystems. Other objects, features, and advantages of the review system,will become more apparent upon reading the following specification inconjunction with the accompanying drawing figures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 illustrates a review system, according to an exemplary embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates an architecture of a computing device for providingthe review system, according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 3 illustrates a transient bookmark of the review system, accordingto an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates a flow diagram of a method of creating a transientbookmark, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 5A-5B illustrate collapsing of a document, according to anexemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 6A-6B illustrate an excerpt of the review system 100, according toan exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 7A-7B illustrate an annotation of the review system 100, accordingto an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

To facilitate an understanding of the principles and features of theinvention, various illustrative embodiments are explained below. Inparticular, the invention is described in the context of being a reviewsystem enabling a user to interact with documents in a fluid-likeenvironment, thus facilitating active reading. Embodiments of theinvention, however, are not limited to this context. Rather, embodimentsof the invention can provide a freeform, fluid-like environment forperforming a variety of tasks.

The components described hereinafter as making up various elements ofthe invention are intended to be illustrative and not restrictive. Manysuitable components that can perform the same or similar functions ascomponents described herein are intended to be embraced within the scopeof the invention. Such other components not described herein caninclude, but are not limited to, similar or analogous componentsdeveloped after development of the invention.

Various embodiments of the present invention are review systems tofacilitate active reading. Referring now to the figures, in which likereference numerals represent like parts throughout the views, variousembodiment of the review system will be described in detail.

FIG. 1 illustrates a review system 100, or document review system,according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. In anexemplary embodiment, the review system 100 can comprise, for example, atouchscreen input device 110 of a computing device 200, a virtualworkspace 120, a document view region 130, a preview region 140, anoptional one or more document objects 150, and a toolbar 160.

The touchscreen input device 110 can be a multi-touch input device forinterfacing with the virtual workspace 120 and other aspects of thereview system 100. In an exemplary embodiment, the touchscreen inputdevice 110 is a multi-touch device capable of receiving multiplesimultaneous touches, thus enabling a user to interact with the reviewsystem 100 in a natural manner, using multiple hands and fingerssimultaneously. A detection system 115 can be integrated with or incommunication with the touchscreen input device 110, to detect userinteractions with the touchscreen input device 110. These userinteractions, or gestures, can be interpreted as commands to the reviewsystem 100. Instead of a touchscreen input device 110, the review system100 can alternatively comprise some other multi-point, bimanual, spatialinput device capable of receiving a wide away of gestures interpretableas commands.

The review system 100 can be designed to improve four major processesthat occur in active reading: annotation, content extraction,navigation, and layout. Conventional paper-like approaches fall short infacilitating these processes because of their fixed structure and lackof flexibility. Utilizing a multi-touch input device 110 can provideparallel and bimanual input, which are important parts of paper-basedreading, and which also enable a flexible environment. A mouse, as usedin most computer-based reading systems, is an inefficient control devicebecause it provides only a single indicator or selector. A keyboard,also used in most computer-based reading systems, lacks a naturalspatial mapping. The flexible interactions made possible by embodimentsof the review system 100 inherently offer more degrees of freedom thantraditionally offered by computer-based reading systems. Controllingthese interactions with a mouse or a keyboard would be highlyinefficient, requiring numerous sequential inputs to create a singlecommand. In contrast, the multi-touch input device 110 can supportmulti-point spatial input and is thus capable of efficiently receiving awide array of gestures for interacting with the review system 100.

As used through this disclosure, the terms “touch,” “hold,” and the likeneed not refer only to physical contact between the user and thetouchscreen input device 110. Such terms can refer to variousinteractions simulating a physical contact, such as pointing from adistance or bringing a finger, hand, or implement in close proximity tothe touchscreen input device 110, so as to indicate a virtual touching,holding, or the like. The definition of a “touch” can beimplementation-dependent, wherein the type of touchscreen input device110 used can determine how interactions are detected and thus how a“touch” or “hold” is defined. For example, and not limitation, thetouchscreen input device 110 can utilize resistive, capacitive, orcamera technologies. If, for example, camera technology is used, then a“touch” can be defined based on camera sensitivity, or on aninstrument's being within a predetermined distance from the touchscreeninput device 110. Additionally, “touch,” “hold,” and like terms need notrefer only to interactions between the user's hands or fingers and thetouchscreen input device 110, but can also refer to interactions with aninstrument held by the user, such as a stylus, marker, or pen.

A display system 118 can be in communication with the detection system115, the touchscreen input device 110, or both. The display system 118can react to user gestures by displaying and refreshing a graphical userinterface presented to the user, preferably through the touchscreeninput device 110, which can perform as both an input and an outputdevice. This graphical user interface can include the virtual workspace120, the review region 130, the document view region 140, and thedocument objects 150, all of which will be described in more detailbelow.

The virtual workspace 120 can be accessible and manipulable through thetouchscreen input device 110. The virtual workspace 120 can simulate aphysical desktop, in that the user can freely move document objects 150throughout the workspace 120 without being bound by a fixed structurecommon in computer-based reading system. In some exemplary embodiments,the virtual workspace 120 can contain the preview region 130 and thedocument view region 140. In other embodiments, however, the virtualworkspace 120 can comprise the useable space of the review system 100outside of the preview region 130 and the document view region 140.

When an application embodying the review system 100 is first opened, thereview system 100 can present the user with the virtual workspace 120containing a document 50, or configured to display a yet-to-be-openeddocument 50. Throughout the active reading process, the user can controlthe document 50 and other document objects 150 in the virtual workspace120 with a vocabulary of multi-touch gestures. Through these gestures,the user can navigate, annotate, and manipulate the virtual workspace120, rarely having to explicitly select tools or otherwise shiftattention away from the document 50 at hand. Some basic interactions canbe performed in the virtual workspace 120 as one might expect based onconventional touch applications. For example, objects can berepositioned by dragging the objects about the virtual workspace 120.Rescaling can be performed by a pinching or stretching gesture with twofingers, preferably in a horizontal orientation. Other performablegestures and operations, however, are new to the review system 100, aswill be described below in detail.

The user can open a document 50 in the virtual workspace 120, and theopen document 50 can be displayed in the one or both of the previewregion 130 and the document view region 140. Throughout this disclosure,various actions are described as being performed or performable on the“text” of the open document 50. It will be understood, however, that allor most of such actions can similarly be performed on imbedded objectsin the document 50 that are not text, such as images or multimedia.Thus, the term “text” throughout this disclosure is used forillustrative purposes only and is not restrictive.

The preview region 130 can be configured to display the document 50 at amagnification or size that enables the user to view the general layoutof the document 50. In an exemplary embodiment, the entire document 50can be viewable in the preview region 130, so as to present the generallayout of the entire document 50 to the user. In some other embodiments,however, the magnification of the preview region 130 can be adjustable,so that the user can select a magnification size that is best suited tothe user's needs.

The document view region 140 can display at least a portion of the opendocument 50. In an exemplary embodiment, the document view region 140can display the document 50 at a magnification or size enabling the userto easily read the text of the document 50. In a further exemplaryembodiment, the magnification of the document 50 in the document viewregion 140 can be modified by the user to enable to user to select atext size best suiting the user's needs.

The text of the document 50 can, in either or both of the preview region130 and the document view region 140, be presented to the user in acontinuous format, with or without pagination. If pagination isprovided, then this provision can be for the user's reference only andneed not restrict operations of the review system 100 to pageboundaries. Some embodiments of the review system 100 can enable theuser to select whether pagination is shown, to further customize theuser's active reading experience. In the document view region 140 and inthe preview region 130, if the entire document 50 is not visible, thenthe user can scroll vertically in the respective region 140 or 130 toadjust the visible portion of the document 50. Scrolling can occur whenthe user performs a predetermined gesture, such as touching therepresentation of the document 50 and, while maintaining contact withthe touchscreen input device 110, sliding the fingers upward ordownward. Sliding downward can cause the document 50 to move downward,thus displaying a previously invisible portion above the previouslydisplayed portion of the document 50. Analogously, sliding upward cancause the document 50 to move upward, thus displaying a previouslyinvisible portion below the previously displayed portion of the document50.

The review system 100 can also support “fast scrolling” in the previewregion 130, the document view region 140, or both. Scrolling at normalspeed can occur as described above, in which case the displayed portionof the document 50 can be adjusted up or down corresponding to thedistance the user's finger slides while in contact with the touchscreeninput device 110. For example, and not limitation, with normalscrolling, the document 50 can be moved by a distance equivalent to thedistance moved by the user's finger while the user's finger is holdingthe touchscreen input device 110. While normal scrolling is thus anintuitive means to navigate a document, normal scrolling can beinefficient for long document, when the user seeks to navigate betweenportions of the document 50 separated by a great distance.

To provide a more efficient scrolling mechanism, the review system 100can also support fast scrolling, which can take advantage of moderntouch sensors. In some embodiments, the review system 100 can detect anamount of pressure, a number of fingers used, or an area of contact fora touch performed in a scrolling gesture. The review system 100 canprovide fast scrolling in response to, for example, increased pressure,increased number of fingers, or increased contact area of a touch. Forexample, if the user drags the document 50 with a light touch, themovement of the document 50 in response can simply follow the finger,resulting in normal-speed scrolling. In contrast, if a firmer touch isused, then the movement of the document 50 can correspond to thepressure of the user's touch. The document 50 can move in the samedirection as the finger, but at a speed corresponding to the pressureapplied by the user, where increased pressure corresponds to increasedspeed and distance, and where decreased pressure corresponds todecreased speed and distance. For example, if the user drags his or herfinger over a distance of one inch, the document 50 can move by one,two, three, or six inches, depending on how hard the user presses thetouchscreen input device 110. Analogously, the review system 100 candecrease scrolling speed in response to, for example, decreasedpressure, decreased number of fingers, or decreased contact area of atouch in a scrolling gesture.

The document objects 150 can be objects created by the user tofacilitate the user's active reading process. For example, and notlimitation, a particular document object 150 can be created by the user,with tools of the review system 100, to represent and include an excerptor annotation of the document 50. The document object 150 can containtext, an image, or another annotation or portion of the document 50. Thedocument object 150 can also comprise a link to the portion of thedocument 50 to which the document object 150 refers. For example, andnot limitation, an excerpt can contain a link back to the portion of thedocument 50 from which the excerpt was extracted. The link 155 can havea visible representation, such as an arrow, which can point from thedocument object 150 to the document view region 140 to indicate that thelinked portion of the document 50 can be displayed in the document viewregion 140. When the user selects the link 155, the document 50 in thedocument view region 140 can automatically scroll to display the portionof the document 50 referred to by the document object 150. In anexemplary embodiment, selecting the link can cause the referred-toportion to be centered within the document view region 140. Selection ofthe link 155 can occur when the user touches the visible representationof the link 155. Various types and uses of the document objects 150 willbe described in more detail later in this disclosure.

The review system 100 can be embodied in a computer-readable medium andexecuted by a computer processor to provide one, some, or all aspects ofthe invention. For example, the review system 100 can be integrated intoa computing device 200, such as by being embodied in a softwareapplication installed on the computing device. FIG. 2 illustrates anarchitecture of an exemplary computing device into which the reviewsystem 100 can be integrated. Those skilled in the art will recognizethat the general architecture described with reference to FIG. 2 is forexample only, and can be modified to accommodate various embodiments ofthe review system 100 and particular operational environments.

Architecturally, the review system 100 can be built on a custom,general-purpose, “query-based,” touch processing system. Animplementation of the review system 100 can be based on the recognitionthat touch input relevant to an operation might not be directed at theobject of that operation. For example, holding a finger on a document 50might mean the user wishes to drag the document 50, or it might mean theuser wishes to keep the region under the user's finger from moving. Moregenerally, with arbitrary numbers of fingers on the touchscreen inputdevice 110, the review system 100 should be able to determine whichgesture is indicated by the current number and arrangement of fingers.

As shown in FIG. 2, a computing device 200 embodying the review system100 can comprise a central processing unit 205 and one or more systemmemories 207, such as a random access memory 209 (“RAM”) and anon-volatile memory, such as a read-only memory (“ROM”) 211. Thecomputing device 200 can further comprise a system bus 212 couplingtogether the memory 207, the processing unit 205, and various othercomponents. A basic input/output system containing routines to assist intransferring information between components of the computing device 200can be stored in the ROM 211. Additionally, the computing device 200 caninclude a mass storage device 214 for storing an operating system 216,application programs, and other program modules.

The mass storage device 214 can be connected to the processing unit 205through a mass storage controller (not shown) connected to the bus 212.The mass storage device 214 and other computer-readable media cancomprise computer storage media, which can include volatile andnon-volatile, removable and non-removable media implemented in anymethod or technology for storage of information, such ascomputer-readable instructions, data structures, program modules, orother data. Computer storage media includes, but is not limited to, RAM,ROM, EPROM, EEPROM, flash memory, other solid state memory technology,CD-ROM, digital versatile disks (“DVD”), other optical storage, magneticcassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage, other magnetic storagedevices, or various other media used to store data accessible by thecomputing device 200.

A number of program modules and data files can be stored in the computerstorage media and RAM 209 of the computing device 200. Such programmodules and data files can include an operating system 216 suitable forcontrolling operations of a networked personal computer. A web browserapplication program, or web client 224, can also be stored on thecomputer storage media and RAM 209. The web client 224 may comprise anapplication program for requesting and rendering web pages 226 createdin Hypertext Markup Language (“HTML”) or other types of markuplanguages. The web client 224 can be capable of executing scriptsthrough the use of a scripting host. The scripting host executes programcode expressed as scripts within the browser environment.

Computer-readable instructions on the storage media of the computingdevice 200 can include, for example, instructions for implementingprocesses of the review system 100 or for implementing a web client 224for receiving instructions from the review system 100 when operatedremotely. These instructions can be executed by the computer processor205 to enable use of the review system 100.

The computing device 200 can operate in a networked environment usinglogical connections to remote computers over a network 250, such as theInternet. The computing device 200 can connect to the network 250 andremote computers through a network interface unit 220 connected to thebus 212.

The computing device 200 can also include an input/output controller 222for receiving and processing input from a number of input devices,including a keyboard, mouse, or electronic stylus. Interactions betweenthe input devices and the review system 100 can be detected by theinput/output controller 222 to provide meaningful input to the computingdevice 200. The input/output controller 222 can additionally provideoutput to a display screen, a printer, or other type of input/outputdevice, such as the multi-touch input device 110 or other appropriateinput device of the review system 100.

The hardware and virtual components described above can work incombination to provide various aspects and operations of the reviewsystem 100, as will be described in detail below.

The review system 100 can provide various mechanisms by which the usercan navigate the document 50 and modify the layout of the document 50for the user's convenience during active reading. For example,dog-earing or bookmarking can be supported in a manner that is moreconvenient than in conventional computer-based systems. In conventionalsystems, bookmarking is supported by navigating to a desired page,selecting a bookmark icon or menu item, and then typing a name for thebookmark. Later, when the user wishes to return to a bookmarkedlocation, the user can select the bookmark that was created. And whenthe bookmark is no longer needed, the user must explicitly delete thebookmark to remove it from the document. This bookmarking process isinconvenient and time-consuming in situations where a user intends tocreate only a temporary bookmark, to facilitate flipping betweensections for comparison. When a user desires simply to compare two ormore sections of a document, the user must bookmark each section andcycle through the bookmark links to flip between the bookmarkedsections.

FIG. 3 illustrates the use of transient bookmarks 300 in the reviewsystem 100, according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention, which are an improvement over bookmarking in conventionalcomputer-based systems. Through transient bookmarking, the review system100 can provide a much more convenient means of bookmarking, analogousto dog-earing and simply holding one's place in a book with a finger.

In the document view region 140 of the review system 100, the user canperform a gesture to create a transient bookmark 300, which can berecalled by a later gesture. For example, the user can simply touch andhold a finger to the document 50 as the user navigates through thedocument 50. In some exemplary embodiments, a touch and hold can beinterpreted as transient bookmarking only when occurring in apredetermined area of the document view region 140, such as near theleft edge. This need not be the case, however, and in some otherembodiments, the touch and hold can occur anywhere on the document 50 tocreate a transient bookmark 300.

The touch and hold can indicate to the review system 100 that the useris holding the currently visible place in the document 50, as the usercontinues to scroll through or otherwise navigate the document 50 in thedocument view region 140. Additional fingers can touch and hold on thedocument 50, next to the first finger, to indicate other transientbookmarks 300 within the document 50, as navigation continues. When afinger touches and holds to create a transient bookmark 300, a graphicalrepresentation 310 or link of the bookmark 300, such as an orb, anarrow, or an icon of a bookmark 300, can be created where the usertouches.

When the user desires to return to a marked document position, the usercan simply lift the finger corresponding to the desired position of thedocument 50 and then replace the finger again within a predeterminedtime period. In response to the lifted and replaced finger, the document50 in the document view region 140 can automatically scroll to displaythe portion of the document 50 that was visible when the fingeroriginally touched down to create the virtual dog-ear or bookmark 300.If the user leaves his or her finger up after lifting it, instead ofreplacing the finger, the transient bookmark can disappear and beautomatically deleted after the predetermined time period, such asseveral seconds. Replacing the finger on the document 50, or on thegraphical representation 310 of the bookmark 300, within thepredetermined time period can cause the review system 100 to continuesaving, or resave, the bookmark 300. Accordingly, by placing andalternately lifting two or more fingers, the user can mark and switchbetween positions in the document 50. The user need not waste timenaming or deleting bookmarks 300, but can thus create transientbookmarks 300 by simply touching and holding the document 50.

Further, as a benefit over both paper and conventional computer-basedsystems, a transient bookmark 300 can save and restore a state of thevirtual workspace 120 or of the document view region 140, as opposed tomerely a position within the document 50. In some embodiments, atransient bookmark 300 can save the current layout of the document 50 orthe current layout of the entire virtual workspace 120. For example, andnot limitation, if a portion of the document 50 includes highlighting oris collapsed, as will be described further below, these aspects of thedocument layout can be restored when a transient bookmark 300 isrecalled, such as by the user's lifting a finger. For another example, abookmark 300 can capture the placement of document objects 150 or themagnification and rotation of the document view region 140 and documentobjects 150. Thus, by using transient bookmarks 300 in the review system100, the user can rapidly flip between and discard layout states byplacing, lifting, and moving fingers.

FIG. 4 illustrates a flow diagram of an exemplary method 400 ofproviding a transient bookmark 300, according to an exemplary embodimentof the present invention. The method 400 depicted in this FIG. 4 isprovided for illustrative purpose and is not limiting, and other methodstoward a similar end can also be implemented. As shown in theillustrated method 400, at 410 the review system 100 can receive atransient bookmark 300 gesture, such as a touch and hold in the documentview region 140. At 420, in response to the bookmarking gesture, thereview system 100 can save the current state of the virtual workspace120. At 430, the review system 100 can then receive one or more othercommands resulting in a change in the state of the virtual workspace120. For example, and not limitation, the user can continue to navigatethe document 50, thus changing the portion of the document 50 displayedin the document view region 140. At 440, the review system 100 canreceive a recall gesture for the bookmark 300, such as the user'sreleasing from the document view region 140 a finger corresponding tothe bookmark 300 and then quickly replacing the finger. In response tothis recall gesture, at 450, the review system 100 can save the currentstate of the virtual workspace 120 and return the virtual workspace 120to the previous state to which the bookmark 300 corresponds. Thus, themethod 400 of FIG. 4 results in creation and use of a transient bookmark300 in the review system 100.

Another tool provided by the review system 100 is collapsing, which isnot efficiently provided in either paper or conventional computer-basedsystems. The review system 100 seeks to treat a document 50 in a fluidmanner, instead of as a rigid structure. Collapsing is a tool to thatend, enabling a user to focus on important parts of the document 50 inthe context of the document's original layout, without being distractedby less important portions of the document 50. In essence, collapsing isa process of squishing, minimizing, or squeezing an intermediate portionof the document 50, so as to bring together two portions of the document50 separated by that intermediate portion.

FIGS. 5A-5B illustrate an example of collapsing a document 50, whereFIG. 5A shows the document 50 in an uncollapsed state, and FIG. 5B showsthe document 50 after being collapsed. As shown by comparing FIGS. 5Aand 5B, an intermediate section C of the document 50 can be collapsed tobring separate sections A and C closer together. Although in FIG. 5A,the distinct sections A and C of the document 50 were bothsimultaneously viewable in the document view region 140 even beforecollapsing, this need not be the case. In some instances, a firstsection A may be far removed from a second section C within the document50, such that both sections would not be simultaneously viewable in thedocument 50 at a readable magnification, without collapsing the document50.

The review system 100 can collapse the document 50 in response to acollapse gesture received from the user. In some embodiments, thecollapse gesture can be a pinching gesture, whereby the user places twofingers, usually a thumb and forefinger, on the touchscreen input device110, and then moves the fingers closer together while maintaining thetouch, thus creating a pinching motion. Pinching to initiate collapsingis intuitive because it corresponding to simultaneously scrolling in twodirections, where the top finger of the pinch scrolls downward, whilethe bottom finger scrolls upward. As a result of this opposite-directionscrolling, the document 50 is collapsed.

As mentioned above, magnification of the document view region 140 canalso be adjusted with a pinching motion. The gestures indicatingcollapse and magnification can be distinguished based on orientation ofthe pinching. For example, and not limitation, magnification can beinitiated by a horizontal pinching gesture, while collapsing can beinitiated by a vertical pinching gesture.

A subtlety of the pinching gesture, in those embodiments where it isused, is that the user can control many aspects of the collapse processby the manner of pinching. For example, and not limitation, if the usermoves his or her top finger toward the bottom finger, then the portionof the document 50 below the fingers can remain stationary while thepart above the fingers can move and collapse downward. Analogously, ifthe user moves his or her bottom finger while leaving the top fingerstationary, the reverse can occur. If the user moves both fingers towardeach other, then both the above and below portions of the document 50can move toward each other and collapse together in the process.Further, the distance by which the user moves his or her fingers cancontrol how much of the document is collapsed. Therefore, the user canperform a complex command, with many degrees of freedom, by way of aone-hand movement.

In addition, or alternatively, to the vertical pinching gesture, one ormore other gestures can also be interpreted as a collapse command. Forexample, a collapse gesture performed on the preview region 130 can beused to initiate collapsing. When the user touches and holds on a firstsection A of the document 50 within the preview region 130, and whileholding the first section A, the user also touches a separate secondsection C also in the preview region 130, the review system 100 caninterpret such touching as a collapse gesture. Yet another collapsegesture can comprise the user's touching and holding a first section Aof the document 50 in the document view region 140 and then touching asecond section C in the preview region 130, or the user can touch andhold the first section A in the preview region 130 and then touch thesecond section C in the document view region 140.

In response to one or all of the above collapse gestures, the reviewsystem 100 can automatically collapse the document 50 and, morespecifically, can collapse the intermediate section B between theseparate sections A and C that were touched by the user in the previewregion 130 or the document view region 140. Performing a version of thecollapse gesture, on the preview region 130, can be particularly usefulwhen the sections A and C that the user desires to bring closer togetherare separated by a large amount of space within the document 50. In thatcase, when a large intermediate section B of the document 50 needs to becollapsed, pinching can become time-consuming. Thus, the preview region130 can be used to initiate collapsing in an efficient manner.

Collapsing can provide a number of benefits to the user during activereading. As shown in FIG. 5B, collapsing can enable the user tosimultaneously view two distinct sections of the document 50 whileretaining the linearity of the document 50 and the context of the twosections A and C. For example, although a portion of the intermediatesection B between the distinct sections A and C may not be readableafter collapsing, some of the intermediate section B can remainreadable, so as to enable the user to see the context of the twosections A and C brought closer together by the collapsing. Retainingthe document's linearity can be beneficial to the user because it canenable the user to maintain awareness of where he or she is within thedocument 50 and, thus, to maintain awareness of the general flow andorganization of the document 50. Additionally, because the collapsedportion is still visible to the user, although not necessarily readable,collapsing can provide the user with a visual cue as to the amount oftext lying between the two distinct sections A and C of the document 50.

It will be understood that collapsing within a single document 50 neednot be limited to bringing two sections closer together. Rather,collapsing can also be used to reduce the distraction caused by multipleunimportant sections. Further, multiple collapsed sections can bepresent within the document 50 simultaneously, so as to enable the userto modify the spatial arrangement of the document 50 and view only thesections of the document 50 that hold interest for the user, whilecollapsing less interesting sections, maintaining the linearity of thedocument 50, and enabling the user to view the context of the sectionsthat remain readable.

The review system 100 can uncollapse a portion of collapsed text uponreceiving an uncollapse gesture. In an exemplary embodiment, forexample, an uncollapse gesture can comprise the user's brushing orswiping a hand or finger upward or downward across the collapsedportion. An upward swipe can cause the review system 100 to uncollapsethe document 50 upward, so as to maintain the bottom position of thecollapsed portion upon uncollapsing. Analogously, a downward swipe caninitiate a downward uncollapsing.

Another important aspect of active reading is text selection andemphasis. The user may wish to emphasize, extract, or otherwisemanipulate portions of the document 50. In order for such manipulationto occur, however, the user can sometimes be required first to selectthe portion of the document 50 to be manipulated. Thus, the reviewsystem 100 can provide a means for selecting text in a document 50.

The review system 100 can select a block of text in the document 50,preferably displayed in the document view region 140, in response toreceiving a selection gesture from the user. In an exemplary embodiment,the selection gesture can comprise the user's touching a forefinger andmiddle finger, or other detectable set of two fingers, to thetouchscreen input device 110 over the document view region 140, wherethe forefinger is positioned just below the starting point of theintended selection area in the document 50. The user can remove themiddle finger and, while maintaining the touch of the forefinger, slidethe forefinger to the end of the text to be selected. Then the user canremove the forefinger to end the touch.

The review system 100 can interpret the above, or some other, selectiongesture as a command to select the text between the start and end pointsof the touch. To confirm that the indicated text was selected, thereview system 100 can temporarily emphasize the selected portion, suchas by coloring, highlighting, underlining, or enlarging the selectedportion in the document view region 140. Unlike some conventionaltouch-based systems, the review system 100 need not rely on dwell timeto detect that a selection gesture is occurring, and the user need nothold his hand or fingers in a single position for an extended period oftime in order for the selection gesture to be recognized by the reviewsystem 100.

In some embodiments of the review system 100, the user can selectmultiple sections of text, thus enabling the user to perform an actionon the multiple selections simultaneously. The review system 100 cancreate multiple selections in response to a multiple-selection gesture.The multiple-selection gesture can comprise, for example, selecting afirst section of text as discussed above, and then touching and holdingthat selected section while creating a second selection elsewhere in thedocument 50. Alternatively, however, the user need not hold a selectedsection to begin selecting other sections of the document 50. In someembodiments, for example, the review system 100 can simply detect thatmultiple selections are being made in sequence, and can thus retain allselections. In that case, a multiple-selection gesture can simple be asequence of selection gestures. All currently selected portions of thedocument 50 can be emphasized to indicate to the user that selection wassuccessful.

After a portion of a document 50 is selected, the user can highlightthat selected portion to maintain an emphasized state of the selectedtext. The review system 100 can recognize a highlighting gestureperformed by the user to highlight the selected or otherwise-indicatedportion of the document 50. For example, and not limitation, thehighlighting gesture can comprise the user's touching a highlight button180 (see FIG. 1) in the virtual workspace 120 or on the toolbar 160before or after completing the selection. In response to thehighlighting gesture, the review system 100 can highlight the selectedportion of the document 50, such as by providing a background color forthe selected portion.

The review system 100 can provide the user with one or more colors withwhich to highlight text in the document 50. If multiple colors areavailable, then the user can select a desired color, and that selectedcolor can be the active highlighting color used to highlight text whenthe user so indicates.

In addition to highlighting, various other tasks can be performed on ablock of selected text. For example, FIGS. 6A-6B illustrate creation ofan excerpt 600 in the review system 100, according to an exemplaryembodiment of the present invention. More specifically, FIG. 6Aillustrates a selected section of text within the document 50, and FIG.6B illustrates the virtual workspace 120 after the selected section asbeen extracted into an excerpt 600.

The review system 100 can create an excerpt 600 in response to anexcerpt gesture, which can comprise a selection gesture in combinationwith an extraction gesture. To perform the extraction portion of thegesture, the user can touch and hold the document 50 with one finger orhand, and then touch and drag the selected text from the document viewregion 140 into a portion of the virtual workspace 120 outside of thedocument view region 140. This can be an intuitive gesture, becauseperforming the gesture simply requires the user, after initialselection, to simulate holding the document 50 in place with one hand,while dragging a portion of the document 50 away with the other hand.

Once created, an excerpt 600 can be encapsulated or embodied in anexcerpt object 650, a type of document object 150 moveable throughoutthe virtual workspace 120. The excerpt object 650 can include the textextracted from the document 50 during the excerpt's creation. In anexemplary embodiment, this text is not removed from the document 50 inthe document view region 140, but is simply duplicated into the excerptobjects 650 for the user's convenience, while maintaining the linearityand content of the document 50 in the document view region 140.

The excerpt object 650 can comprise a link 155 back to the portion ofthe document 50 from which it was extracted. That link 155 can have agraphical representation, such as an arrow, visible on or near theexcerpt object 650 in the virtual workspace 120. When the user selectsthe link 155, such as by touching the graphical representation, thedocument view region 140 can automatically return to the portion of thedocument 50 referred to by the excerpt object 650. In other words, ifthe document view region 140 no longer displays the section of thedocument 50 from which the excerpt 600 was extracted, that section ofthe document 50 can automatically become centered in the document viewregion 140 when the user selects the arrow or other representation ofthe link 155 contained by the excerpt object 650. Thus, the user canretrieve the portion of the document 50 referred to by an excerpt object650 by simply selecting the link 155 of the excerpt object 650.

In the document view region 140, the portion of the document 50 that wasextracted to the excerpt object 650 can contain a link 55 to the excerptobject 650. Like the link 155 comprised in the excerpt object 650, thelink 55 in the document view region 140 can have a graphicalrepresentation, such as an arrow. This arrow can be positioned on ornear the extracted portion of the document 50 in the document viewregion 140. When the link 55 is selected, the excerpt object 650referred to by the link 55 can be emphasized by the review system 100,to enable the user to locate the excerpt object 650. Emphasis can takevarious forms. For example, and not limitation, the excerpt object 650can automatically be placed in front of other document objects 150 thatmay appear in the virtual workspace 120 and that may block the user'sview of the excerpt object 650. Alternatively, for example, the excerptobject 650 can flash, change colors, or be emphasized in various othermanner to enable the user to locate the excerpt object 650 as a resultof the user's selection of the link 55 within the document 50. Thus,when an excerpt is created, the review system 100 can establish a pairof bidirectional links enabling the user to maintain a connectionbetween the excerpt 600 and the portion of the document 50 from theexcerpt 600 was extracted.

A large shortcoming of paper is the constraint that paper places ontextual annotations, such as comments and notes. Annotations on papermust generally be fit to the space of a small margin, and are typicallyonly able to refer to text appearing within a single page. Whilesoftware products like Microsoft Word® and Adobe Acrobat® avoid some ofthese difficulties, these software products still largely follow paper'sparadigm. As a result, annotations created by these software productsare thus limited to a single referent on a single page, and the user isprovided little control over the size and scale of annotations. Thereview system 100 can overcome these difficulties by providing aflexible visual-spatial arrangement.

FIGS. 7A-7B illustrate creation of an annotation 700 in the reviewsystem 100, according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention. More specifically, FIG. 7A illustrates selection of text inthe document 50 to which an annotation 700 will refer, and FIG. 7Billustrates an annotation object 750 referring back to the text selectedin FIG. 7A.

Creation of an annotation 700 in the review system 100 can begin withselection of text in the document 50, as displayed in the document viewregion 140, or with selection of text in a preexisting document object150. After text is selected, the user can simply begin typing, or theuser can select an annotation button and then begin typing. The reviewsystem 100 can then interpret the typed text as an annotation 700, whichcan be encapsulated in an annotation object 750, a type of documentobject 150. The typed input received from the user can be displayed inthe annotation object 750.

In some embodiments, the annotation object 750 need not refer to only asingle portion of text, in the document 50 or in another document object150. For example, an annotation object 750 referring to multipleportions can be created when the user selects two or more sections oftext, using the multiple selection gesture, and then types theannotation text. For another example, an annotation 700 can be createdfor multiple sections by touching and holding each intended sectionwithin the preview region 130, the document view region 140, documentobjects 150, or some combination of these, and then typing or selectingan annotation button.

The annotation object 750 can have many similarities to an excerptobject 650, given that both are types of document objects 150, whichwill be described in more detail below. For example, like an excerptobject 650, the review system 100 can create a bidirectional linkbetween each annotation object 750 and the portion or portions of textreferred to by the annotation object 750. The annotation object 750 canthus contain a link 155 back to the one or more text portions of thedocument 50 or other document objects 150 to which the annotation object750 refers. That link 155 can have a graphical representation, such asan arrow, linking the annotation object 750 back to the portions of textto which the annotation 700 refers. In some embodiments, the annotationobject 750 can have a separate link 155 for each portion of text towhich the annotation object 750 refers, while in other embodiments, asingle link 155 can be used to refer back to all of the related portionsof text in the document 50 or elsewhere. When a single link 155 is used,and when the user selects the single link 155 of the annotation object750, the document 50 can automatically collapse to simultaneouslydisplay any portions of the document 50 linked to the annotation 700,and any document objects 150 linked to the annotation object 750 canautomatically move into view in front of other document objects 150 inthe virtual workspace 120. Likewise, if multiple links 155 are used, theuser can touch and hold multiple links 155 of an annotation object 750to prompt the review system 100 to collapse the document 50 and recallthe linked document objects 150, as needed to display the multiplelinked portions of text.

Document objects 150, such as excerpt objects 650 and annotation objects750, can be located in the virtual workspace 120 and manipulable in amanner similar to physical objects in a physical workspace. For example,and not limitation, a document object 150 can be freely moved about thevirtual workspace 120 and positioned in the workspace 120 wherever theuser desires. Document objects 150 can be placed over one another, so asto hide each other or to bring one document object 150 into view at theexpense of the visibility of another document object 150. The size andnumber of document objects 150 that can be placed on the virtualworkspace 120 need not have a predetermined limit, so the user cancreate and manipulate as many document objects 150 as the user desiresto fit into the virtual workspace 120.

In some embodiments, the review system 100 can recognize a resizinggesture, such as a pinching gesture, for modifying the size of anindividual document object 150. The user may desire to selectively andtemporarily enlarge or shrink individual or groups of document objects150 in the virtual workspace 120, as shown by an exemplary enlargeddocument object 150 e in FIG. 1. The review system 100 can selectivelyenlarge or shrink one or more individual document objects 150 inresponse to the user's performance of the resizing gesture on theindividual document objects 150.

As discussed above with respect to excerpt objects 650 and annotationobjects 750, a first document object 150 can contain a link or links 155to one or more portions of the document 50 or other document objects 150associated with the first document object 150. The link 155 can be partof a bidirectional link, where the other part of the bidirectional linkis associated with the document 50 in the document view region 140, orwith another document object 150, and refers back to the first documentobject 150. Selecting a link 155 of the first document object 150 cancause the document 50 in the document view region 140 to scroll, so asto position the related portion of the document 50 at the verticalcenter of the document view region 140. Alternatively, if the link 155connects to another document object 155, then when the link is selected,that other document object 150 can be automatically brought into viewover other document objects 150. If multiple portions of text in thedocument 50 or other document objects 150 are referred to by a selectedlink 155, or if multiple links 155 of the first document object 150 areselected, or if multiple links 155 of multiple document objects 150 areselected, then the document 50 in the document view region 140 cancollapse, scroll, or collapse and scroll as needed to simultaneouslydisplay all portions of the document 50 referred to by the links 155.Analogously, linked document objects 150 can also be brought into viewas necessary to display the text referred to by the links 155. Furtheranalogously, if selected links 155 additionally refer to portions of asecond document 50 in a second document view region 140, that seconddocument 50 and second document view region 140 can also be modified asneeded to display the text referred to by the selected links 155.

In the same or similar manner by which a document object 150 can belinked to a portion of the document 50 or to another document object150, two or more portions of a document 50 or in different documents 50can be linked together. A bidirectional link between two or moredocument 50 portions can be created in response to a linking gesture. Alinking gesture can include, for example, selecting the desired document50 portions and then touching the desired portions simultaneously. Inresponse to this linking gesture, the review system 100 can create abidirectional link between the selected portions of the document 50.Like the links associated with document object 150, selection of thelink at one of the linked document 50 portions can automatically causethe other linked portions to come into view.

In addition to being moveable throughout the workspace 120, documentobjects 150 can also be attachable to one another, to enable the user torearrange the document objects 150 and the virtual workspace 120 asneeded. To attach two or more document objects 150 together, the usercan touch and drag one document object 150 until it contacts another.The two document objects 150 can then be attached to each other, untilthe user touches both of them and drags them away from each other. Insome exemplary embodiments, when a group of document objects 150 areattached together, moving a primary one of those attached documentobjects 150 can cause all of the attached document objects 150 to movetogether, maintaining their spatial relationships with one another. Theprimary document object 150 can be, for example, the document object 150positioned at the highest point in the virtual workspace 120, ascompared to the other grouped document objects 150. Thus, the user cangroup annotation 700 and excerpts 600 together into a group to assistthe user in performing the organizational aspects of active reading.Further, even after grouping document objects 150 together, the user cancontinue to rearrange the virtual workspace 120 to best suit the user'sneeds.

In some other exemplary embodiments, document objects 150 within a groupcan have a parent-child hierarchy, where a primary document object 150,such as the highest positioned or the first to become a member of thegroup, can be a parent of a lower positioned or later-grouped documentobject 150. A parent document object 150 can control the movement of itschild or children, such that when the user moves the parent documentobject 150, the child document object 150 automatically moves, thusmaintaining its spatial relationship to its parent document object 150.In contrast, when a child document object 150 is moved, its parent neednot follow. The same parent-child principles can apply to manipulationsof document objects 150 other than repositioning. For example, and notlimitation, resizing, and deletion can also be inherited by a childdocument object 150 from a parent document object 150, such that thechild document object 150 can be resized, magnified, or deletedautomatically along with its parent document object 150. In contrast,manipulations performed to a child document object 150 need not beinherited by a parent document object 150.

When the user seeks to exit the review system 100 but would like toretain the state of the virtual workspace 100, the review system 100 canenable the user to save the current state of the virtual workspace 120.For example, the review system 100 can export the virtual workspace 120by printing to paper, printing to Adobe PDF, or exported to an image.For further example, the review system 100 can be associated with aproprietary document format. If the user saves the virtual workspace 120in this format, then the user can return to the virtual workspace 120 tocontinue active reading in the same state in which the virtual workspace120 was saved.

Embodiments of the review system can thus be used to facilitate activereading, by providing a fluid-like, non-rigid, reading environmentcustomizable by a user. While the review system has been disclosed inexemplary forms, many modifications, additions, and deletions may bemade without departing from the spirit and scope of the system, method,and their equivalents, as set forth in the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: displaying a portion of adocument in a document view region of a virtual workspace and displayinga preview of the document in a document preview region, wherein thedocument preview region is separate from the document view region anddisplays a representation of the document different than the displayedportion of the document in the document view region; receiving anextraction gesture indicating an extraction portion of the document fromthe displayed portion of the document and an extraction location in thevirtual workspace, the extraction location being in the virtualworkspace outside of the document view region; displaying two or moredocument objects in the virtual workspace, the document objects beingmanipulable and moveable about the virtual workspace in response to userinteraction; wherein one of the document objects comprises a firstexcerpt object at the extraction location containing a duplicate copy ofcontent extracted from the extraction portion of the document, inresponse to the extraction gesture; and wherein the first excerpt objectcomprises a visible link between the first excerpt object and theextraction portion of the document; receiving a selection of the firstexcerpt object; modifying the document view region to display theextraction portion of the document, if the extraction portion of thedocument is not currently displayed in the document view region, inresponse to the selection of the first excerpt object; receiving acollapse command comprising: selection of a first collapse object in thedocument view region linked to a first portion of the document; andwhile the first collapse object is selected, receiving a selection of asecond collapse object in the document preview region that is linked toa second portion of the document, wherein an intermediate portion of thedocument is positioned between the first portion and the second portionof the document; and automatically repositioning in the document viewregion one or both of the first portion and the second portion of thedocument in response to the collapse command by shrinking the size ofthe intermediate portion of the document in the document view regionsuch that both first and second portions are positioned to be displayedwithin the document view region; wherein the first portion and thesecond portion of the document are displayed closer together in thedocument view region after repositioning.
 2. The method of claim 1,further comprising: providing a second visible link between the firstexcerpt object and the extraction portion of the document; receiving aselection of the second visible link; and recalling the first excerptobject in response to the selection of the second visible link.
 3. Themethod of claim 2, further comprising providing an obstructing documentobject positioned in the virtual workspace to obstruct the view of theexcerpt object, wherein recalling the first excerpt object comprisesrepositioning the first excerpt object to avoid the obstruction of anyvisual elements in the virtual workspace.
 4. The method of claim 1,further comprising performing the extraction gesture by moving theextraction portion of the document into the extraction location outsideof the document view region.
 5. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising performing the extraction gesture by moving, in response touser interaction, the extraction portion of the document into theextraction location outside of the document view region.
 6. The methodof claim 5, wherein moving, in response to user interaction, comprisestouching a touchscreen input device interfacing with the virtualworkspace, and dragging the extraction portion of the document.
 7. Themethod of claim 1, wherein modifying the document view region comprisesscrolling the document in response to a scrolling gesture to display theextraction portion of the document when the extraction portion of thedocument is not currently displayed in the document view region.
 8. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the visible link is only visible forselection upon an actuation event.
 9. The method of claim 8, wherein theactuation event comprises, in response to user interaction, touching atouchscreen input device interfacing with the virtual workspace.
 10. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the first excerpt object comprises a textblock of the document.
 11. The method of claim 1, wherein the documentpreview region is configured to guide navigation of the document in thedocument view region; and wherein, in response to receiving a selectionof a preview portion of the document in the document preview region, thedocument view region displays the preview portion of the document. 12.The method of claim 11, wherein the document preview region isconfigured to display the entire document simultaneously.
 13. The methodof claim 1, further comprising receiving a collapse gesture to invokethe collapse command.
 14. The method of claim 1, further comprisingexpanding the intermediate portion of the document in response to anuncollapse command.
 15. The method of claim 14, wherein the uncollapsecommand comprises an uncollapse gesture of an upward swiping over theintermediate portion of the document.
 16. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: displaying a first viewable portion of the document in thedocument view region, wherein a hidden portion of the document is hiddenfrom the document view region; receiving an annotation input; creatingan annotation object at an annotation location in the virtual workspaceoutside of the document, in response to receiving the annotation input,the annotation object comprising the annotation input; receiving aselection of a second viewable portion of the document within thedocument view region; providing a graphical link to the second viewableportion of the document; modifying the document view region to hide thesecond viewable portion of the document from the document view region;receiving a selection of the graphical link; and modifying the documentview region to display the second viewable portion of the document inresponse to the selection of the graphical link.
 17. The method of claim1, wherein the document is a first document, the method furthercomprising: displaying a second document in a second document viewregion of the virtual workspace; receiving a linking gesture indicatinga first linking section in the first document and a second linkingsection in the second document; displaying a first graphical linkproximate the first linking section in the first document, in responseto the linking gesture; displaying a second graphical link proximate thesecond linking section in the second document, in response to thelinking gesture; receiving a selection of the first graphical link; andmodifying the second document view region to make the second linkingsection in the second document visible in the second document viewregion, in response to the selection of the first graphical link, if thesecond linking section in second document is not visible in the seconddocument view region at the time of the selection of the first graphicallink.
 18. The method of claim 1, further comprising: a physical touchinterface for the virtual workspace; and detecting a touch on the touchinterface.
 19. The method of claim 1, wherein placement of the firstexcerpt object is independent of the document and moveable about thevirtual workspace.
 20. The method of claim 1, wherein placement of thefirst excerpt object is dependent on the document.
 21. The method ofclaim 1, wherein shrinking the size of the intermediate portion of thedocument in response to the collapse command comprises removing entirelyfrom view the intermediate portion of the document.
 22. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the visible link is a part of the first excerpt object.23. The method of claim 1, wherein the visible link touches the firstexcerpt object.
 24. The method of claim 1, wherein in response to thecollapse command, the document view region is modified to simultaneouslydisplay the first portion of the document and the second portion of thedocument.
 25. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the first collapseobject, the second collapse object, and the first excerpt object aredifferent document objects.
 26. The method of claim 1, wherein one ofthe first and second collapse objects comprise the first excerpt object.27. The method of claim 1, wherein each document object comprises one ormore of: a text portion of the document; an image portion of thedocument; and an annotation portion of the document.
 28. A methodcomprising: displaying a portion of a document in a document view regionof a virtual workspace and displaying a preview of the document in adocument preview region, wherein the document preview region is separatefrom the document view region and displays a representation of thedocument different than the displayed portion of the document in thedocument view region; receiving an extraction gesture indicating anextraction portion of the document from the displayed portion of thedocument and an extraction location in the virtual workspace, theextraction location being in the virtual workspace outside of thedocument view region; displaying two or more document objects in thevirtual workspace, the document objects being manipulable and moveableabout the virtual workspace in response to user interaction, wherein oneof the document objects comprises a first excerpt object at theextraction location containing a duplicate copy of content extractedfrom the extraction portion of the document, in response to theextraction gesture, and wherein the first excerpt object comprises avisible link between the first excerpt object and the extraction portionof the document; receiving a selection of the first excerpt object;modifying the document view region to display the extraction portion ofthe document, if the extraction portion of the document is not currentlydisplayed in the document view region, in response to the selection ofthe first excerpt object; receiving a modification command comprising:selection of a first modification portion of the document in thedocument view region linked to a first portion of the document; andwhile the first modification portion of the document is selected,receiving a selection of a modification location in the document previewregion that refers to a second modification portion of the document; andautomatically and simultaneously displaying in the document view regionthe first modification portion of the document and the secondmodification portion of the document in response to the modificationcommand by repositioning the first and the second modification portionsto be displayed closer together within the document view region.
 29. Themethod of claim 28, wherein each document object comprises one or moreof: a text portion of the document; an image portion of the document;and an annotation portion of the document.
 30. The method of claim 28,further comprising receiving a collapse command to at least a portion ofthe document, the collapse command comprising: selection of a firstcollapse object in the document view region linked to a first collapseportion of the document; and while the first collapse object isselected, receiving a selection of a second collapse object linked to asecond collapse portion of the document; wherein each of the first andthe second collapse objects are document objects; and wherein anintermediate collapse portion of the document is positioned between thefirst collapse portion and the second collapse portion of the document;and automatically repositioning in the document view region one or bothof the first collapse portion and the second collapse portion of thedocument in response to the collapse command by shrinking the size ofthe intermediate collapse portion of the document; wherein the firstcollapse portion and the second collapse portion of the document aredisplayed closer together in the document view region afterrepositioning.
 31. The method of claim 30, wherein each of the firstcollapse object, the second collapse object and the excerpt object aredifferent document objects.
 32. The method of claim 30, wherein thefirst collapse object, the second collapse object and the excerpt objectcomprise at least two different document objects.
 33. The method ofclaim 30, wherein each document object comprises one or more of: a textportion of the document; an image portion of the document; and anannotation portion of the document.